In the tearoom, both were silent, Qing Yi just stared intently, and Ye Qingxuan sighed softly, then asked.
"Senior, do you think I've been too lenient with him, and shouldn't have agreed to him?"
"The die is cast. Is there any point in talking about this now? Besides, is it really good to ask me, an artificial intelligence?"
"But I'm very happy to see that you've moved on from that incident. I'm sure little Xuanzi would be happy for you too."
Hearing this, Ye Qingxuan's expression dimmed.
But Qing Yi had no intention of stopping there. She slowly stood up and silently walked behind the now graceful woman.
She opened her arms and gently embraced her head.
The newly refitted body was made of brilliant porcelain, but its surface still had a delicate, skin-like texture, even warmer than a normal person's.
She held the girl like a mother embracing her child, caressing her face with deep apology and guilt.
"After all these years, I still want to properly apologize to you. Are you ready to hear the truth about that incident?"
She was the person in charge of the Ye family's extermination case.
That case had been on her hands for eleven years.
It seemed to have become a cold case. Her superiors had hinted for her to stop investigating, and she was even temporarily transferred from the Wei Fei Territory Public Security Bureau.
Followed by a series of demotions.
But Qing Yi continued to investigate in secret.
Eleven years ago, the Ye family seemed to know that someone would come to wipe them out, so they reported it early.
But there was no evidence.
The patriarch seemed to be hiding something, stubbornly refusing to disclose anything, which left the Public Security Bureau helpless.
Only Qing Yi was left to follow up on the investigation.
She became good friends with the eldest daughter of the Ye family, hoping to gather some useful information through her.
But that night.
Everything happened so suddenly.
Qing Yi immediately contacted Xuan Mingzi.
After all, she knew that the Public Security Bureau internally could not be trusted.
Moreover, the entire Wei Fei Territory Public Security Bureau might not be as strong as him alone, but it was only a matter of waiting.
The two hid in the basement.
Cries, pleas for mercy, and the nauseating smell of blood permeated the air, followed by a raging fire that swept through.
"Where is the Ye family's daughter?"
"We didn't find her. She probably ran away. We've already set the Ye family mansion on fire, even the basement…"
"As long as she's in the mansion, she definitely won't survive."
"Retreat, the people from Yun Kui Mountain are coming…"
The faint voices disappeared, but only Qing Yi heard all this. She shielded the girl from the raging fire.
When Xuan Mingzi arrived, only one person from the Ye family remained.
The medical family, which had been passed down for hundreds of years, was now left with only an orphaned girl in this world. The night was dark and unclear.
Clouds obscured the bright moon, and the high walls of the courtyard collapsed.
Scattered flickers of wildfire glowed, and ashes brushed against the almost deranged girl's face. She walked over the remains of her clan members.
Even though they had long since turned to ash and charcoal.
Step by step, her almost suffocated body stumbled, but she remained resolute, finally kneeling before Xuan Mingzi.
"I want revenge…"
"Master, please accept me."
Xuan Mingzi wanted to say something, but the girl just kept kowtowing, even if her scalp broke and bled, she didn't care.
"Good child, then… come back to the mountain with me."
From then on, there was no longer the eldest daughter of the Ye family in the world, only Ye Qingxuan of Yun Kui Mountain, with one person and one sword.
Regardless of rain, snow, cold, or heat.
Regardless of dawn or dusk.
Even if calluses formed on her hands, even if she was too tired to stand, even if she was knocked down by her senior brother again and again.
She still clutched her sword tightly, with only one word in her heart—
Kill!
Qing Yi knew of her struggles over the years, but she had no face to see her again, and even when she returned to Wei Fei Territory… she would leave in a hurry.
If she had been more perceptive back then, and contacted Xuan Mingzi earlier, would everything have been completely different?
No one knows.
After all, the die is cast.
Now, with the passage of time, this child seems to have let go of her obsession and no longer dwells on the past.
"Senior, I can actually guess…"
"It's Qiao's, one of the TOPS, right?"
Ye Qingxuan pressed down hard on the saber beside the floor cushion, and the floor began to slightly indent, almost unable to support it.
"…"
Qing Yi no longer hesitated and decided to tell the truth. That year, the Ye family was deeply involved in the human experiments of the Eulogy Society and Qiao's.
But in the final stage, they chose to withdraw.
The specific reasons had long been buried in history, but the reasons were not important to outsiders.
They were already on the same boat, so who would allow the other party to withdraw, and Wei Fei Territory was Yun Kui Mountain's territory.
There were too many uncontrollable factors.
Thus, the tragedy of the extermination occurred.
The story was not uncommon, but it was an undeserved disaster for the Ye family members who had not participated, but they all died.
So there was no pain to speak of.
This matter eventually erupted… but that was several years later.
Qing Yi traced the clues and uncovered the truth.
The behemoth that was Qiao's naturally would not collapse because of this. People were brought out to say that this was an illegal experiment, and it was segmented.
No one could control the Eulogy Society, that rat hiding in the dark corners. The Public Security Bureau only said it would intensify its investigation and pursuit.
Everything ended with an understatement.
The scapegoats who committed suicide in prison, the long-exterminated Ye family in Wei Fei Territory, and the Eulogy Society, an organization that didn't fear being bitten by too many fleas.
They were labeled as criminals by the Municipal Government.
This was the result of a collective compromise, and some council members even proposed to severely punish the descendants of the Ye family and hand over the medical skills and patents accumulated by the Ye family.
They claimed this part had been inherited by Yun Kui Mountain.
Xuan Mingzi, in front of everyone, threw that council member out of the council hall, with the Qing Ming Sword hovering above.
The cold old man said nothing.
No one present dared to speak further.
"It's not a very interesting story. Why didn't Master tell me earlier…"
"Little Xuanzi wants to show off?"
Qing Yi gently wiped the girl's tears, her palm stroking her smooth, waterfall-like black hair. Was her palm trembling?
No, it was the girl who was trembling.
At this time, humans need a partner for comfort, right?
That little fellow flies his sword quite fast, why hasn't he arrived yet? She was calculating the time… In these past few days, Qing Yi, based on the information collected, had also deduced that both little Hong Dou and little Qing Xuan had actually been won over by this little fellow.
Even more absurd was that Bai Xian also seemed to… to her junior nephew. She judged purely from rationality and probability. Based on what Bai Xian usually did to Yun Ming, even an AI would determine there was a high probability that she wanted to "eat young grass."
It was too much.
However, Qing Yi naturally had to support Qing Xuan.
As for little Hong Dou, well, sorry about that, you're still young anyway, childhood sweethearts, innocent and pure.
It's better to be simple.
More profound things, just leave them to your Sister Qingxuan to handle~
And as for Bai Xian… Qing Yi couldn't understand what was going on in the mind of a human who had lived longer than her. Anyway, that person was still lying flat.
So just lie there honestly.
"Senior Sister, I'm back~"
A cheerful shout came from afar, followed by a streak of light and a figure pouncing over.
But just as he was about to pounce, he emergency-braked.
He stopped precisely one meter behind Qing Yi. Damn it, someone was snatching his Senior Sister Qingxuan. Even if Yun Ming liked her a lot in the game, it wasn't allowed.
"…"
"We meet again, benefactor. Do you want this humble girl to pledge herself to you, or work like an ox or horse? Or perhaps~"